'He's number one terrorist': Union Minister Bittu sparks controversy while attacking Rahul Gandhi
Bhagalpur, Sep 15: Attacking Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi over the statements he made in the US about the condition of Sikhs in India, Union minister Ravneet Singh Bittu on Sunday said that if those "manufacturing bombs" were supporting him, he is the "number one terrorist".
Bittu, the MoS for railways, made the remark in Bihar's Bhagalpur where he came to attend the flagging-off ceremony of a Vande Bharat Express train to Howrah.
Condemning the statement, the Congress said he was talking "like a senseless man".
Speaking to reporters, Bittu said, "Rahul Gandhi spent most of his time outside the country. His friends and family are there. I think he does not love his country much because he goes abroad and says negative things about India. I think he is not a Hindustani."
"Now, he has got support from separatists, who always talk about dividing this country. They (separatists) and the most-wanted persons are also appreciating Rahul Gandhi for his remarks against Sikhs. When such people, who are also experts in manufacturing bombs, are supporting Rahul Gandhi, then he is the number one terrorist of the country. He is talking like a separatist. There should be a reward for catching him as he is the biggest enemy of the country," he added.
Bittu alleged that Congress earlier tried to "use" Muslims, but as that could not happen, it was now attempting to divide Sikhs.
"Gandhi talks about OBCs and other castes. He has not been able to understand the pain of a cobbler, carpenter or mechanic, even after being the leader of the opposition. This is a joke," he said.
Addressing a gathering of Indian Americans in Washington DC, Gandhi had said that in India, the fight is about whether a Sikh is going to be allowed to wear his turban or a kada or he is going to be able to go to Gurdwara. He also accused the RSS of considering some religions, languages and communities inferior to others.
Senior Congress leader Shakeel Ahmed Khan said people know about the Gandhi family's contribution to the country.
"Whatever Bittu has said is not acceptable at all. He is talking like a senseless man. People know about the Gandhi family's contribution to this country. Bittu himself was in the Congress. His father was also a Congressman. His remark against Rahul Gandhi is highly condemnable," Khan, the Congress legislature party leader in the state assembly, told PTI.
#WATCH | Bhagalpur, Bihar: On Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi's recent statements, Union Minister Ravneet Singh Bittu says, "Rahul Gandhi is not an Indian, he has spent most of his time outside. He does not love his country much because he goes abroad and says everything in a wrong… pic.twitter.com/uZTvtSuhGj
— ANI (@ANI) September 15, 2024
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Israel launches first airstrike on Lebanon since ceasefire, accusing Hezbollah of breaching truce
Beirut, Nov 28: The Israeli military on Thursday said its warplanes fired on southern Lebanon after detecting Hezbollah activity at a rocket storage facility, the first Israeli airstrike a day after a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah took hold.
There was no immediate word on casualties from Israel's aerial attack, which came hours after the Israeli military said it fired on people trying to return to certain areas in southern Lebanon. Israel said they were violating the ceasefire agreement, without providing details. Lebanon's state-run National News Agency said two people were wounded.
The back-to-back incidents stirred unease about the agreement, brokered by the United States and France, which includes an initial two-month ceasefire in which Hezbollah members are to withdraw north of the Litani River and Israeli forces are to return to their side of the border. The buffer zone would be patrolled by Lebanese troops and UN peacekeepers.
On Thursday, the second day of a ceasefire after more than a year of bloody conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, Lebanon's state news agency reported that Israeli fire targeted civilians in Markaba, close to the border, without providing further details. Israel said it fired artillery in three other locations near the border. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
An Associated Press reporter in northern Israel near the border heard Israeli drones buzzing overhead and the sound of artillery strikes from the Lebanese side.
The Israeli military said in a statement that “several suspects were identified arriving with vehicles to a number of areas in southern Lebanon, breaching the conditions of the ceasefire.” It said troops “opened fire toward them” and would “actively enforce violations of the ceasefire agreement.”
Israeli officials have said forces will be withdrawn gradually as it ensures that the agreement is being enforced. Israel has warned people not to return to areas where troops are deployed, and says it reserves the right to strike Hezbollah if it violates the terms of the truce.
A Lebanese military official said Lebanese troops would gradually deploy in the south as Israeli troops withdraw. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief media.
The ceasefire agreement announced late Tuesday ended 14 months of conflict between Israel and Hezbollah that began a day after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023 attack out of Gaza, when the Lebanese Hezbollah group began firing rockets, drones and missiles in solidarity.
Israel retaliated with airstrikes, and the conflict steadily intensified for nearly a year before boiling over into all-out war in mid-September. The war in Gaza is still raging with no end in sight.
More than 3,760 people were killed by Israeli fire in Lebanon during the conflict, many of them civilians, according to Lebanese health officials. The fighting killed more than 70 people in Israel — over half of them civilians — as well as dozens of Israeli soldiers fighting in southern Lebanon.
Some 1.2 million people were displaced in Lebanon, and thousands began streaming back to their homes on Wednesday despite warnings from the Lebanese military and the Israeli army to stay out of certain areas. Some 50,000 people were displaced on the Israeli side, but few have returned and the communities near the northern border are still largely deserted.
In Menara, an Israeli community on the border with views into Lebanon, around three quarters of homes are damaged, some with collapsed roofs and burnt-out interiors. A few residents could be seen gathering their belongings on Thursday before leaving again.
